Hummingbird

Hummingbird

Experience a dance of the Aztec people.

Airs May 21, 2017 at 5:25 p.m

Available for streaming from May 1, 2017 – August 30, 2019

Under the watchful gaze of ancient Aztec leaders, contemporary Aztec dancers from Seattle-based dance group Kalpulli Tlaloktekuhtl perform a springtime dance representing the flight of the hummingbird.

Watch a trailer

For the Aztec people, Huitzilopochtli is the god of war, sun and sacrifice. In Hummingbird, contemporary Aztec dancers from Kalpulli Tlaloktekuht perform under the watchful gaze of ancient Aztec leaders in a dance that captures the flight of the hummingbird. Just like the hummingbird, which represents fertility and joy, the dancers dart and dive with great agility.

The murals of ancient Aztecs overlooking the dancers were painted by local artist Andrew Morrison and had been slated to be destroyed along with the building that served as Morrison’s canvas. The murals, however, were saved from destruction and have since been relocated to Robert Eagle Staff Middle School and Cascadia Elementary School in Seattle.

Hummingbird was created by Longhouse Media, an organization whose mission is to help indigenous communities tell their own stories and use media as a tool for self-expression, social change, and cultural preservation.

About the filmmakers

Tracy Rector is a Choctaw/Seminole filmmaker and activist and the co-founder of Longhouse Media. In addition to arts advocacy, Rector has made 400 short films. She is currently in production of her fifth feature documentary.

Rector’s work is aimed at fostering an awareness of and sensitivity to the power of media and film as a modern storytelling tool.